Catching Gorlliaz live is something of a rarity in the same way it is with any of Albarn’s projects.

But while Blur have play enormous shows across the UK over the last decade, this tour still feels like a genuine treat and a big opportunity for many (myself included) to catch them live for the first time.

It’s a surprise when the show is opened with M1 A1 and Last Living Souls from their early material.

Not because they’re unsuitable, but because you would expect new album Humanz to be showcased a little more. Rhinestone Eyes, from the untouchable album Plastic Beach, follows and it’s not until Charger that we finally get a taste from the latest record.

Gorillaz at Arena Birmingham (Image: @N1CKYWIRE)

The reason for this soon becomes clear. The middle of the set is a dedicated Humanz section. It’s Gorillaz at their finest, meshing genres and guests and it’s interesting that these tracks have dropped the avatars that made them so unique in the first place.

The message is that Albarn has never been afraid to experiment with Gorillaz, and it’s this that makes them so brilliant and allows the middle section to shine so bright.

Just before that, we’re treated to Superfast Jellyfish and, notably, the incredible On Melancholy Hill.

The sheer eclecticness of talent and genres around it means that it doesn’t quite make the standout moment of the night, even if it is arguably the standout moment of their recording history.

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Still, it’s as stripped back and beautiful as you can expect from a band debuting their live string section in Birmingham.

Tracks like Stylo and Feel Good Inc showcase their mainstream successes best towards the end of the main set and Clint Eastwood obviously does the same as part of the encore.

What follows after that is something of an epilogue to the show, with gospel-driven Demon Days seeing the night out. It could be seen as anti-climatic but it works as a way of slowing bringing you down.

It’s just a shame so many chose that moment to make their exit.

Gorillaz are Damon Albarn at his very best. Here he is his most creative, compelling and impressive musician. To see all the ideas he’s poured into the act come alive on stage with such brilliance was something literally only they could do.